Uninspiring pub grub at O'Connells

One thing I miss about living in London is the pubs.  London pubs have a great sense of history and often you can get a really good meal at them.  Most Melbourne pubs have the emphasis firmly on the booze rather than the food but one pub which has consistently set itself apart as a "gastro pub" is O'Connell's in South Melbourne.

O'Connells looks pretty fancy these days

O'Connell's has just been renovated and the menu revamped so my sister's birthday was the perfect excuse to revisit it for a family lunch.  Wood panelled walls painted dark grey give a sense of theatre to the pub and crisp linens and shining glassware signal that you are not in any ordinary watering hole.  The prices of the drinks are also a bit of a giveaway, order anything other than a Carlton Draught ($4.50) and you will find yourself paying a whopping $8.50 for something like an Asahi.  That's an expensive beer!  

There's a parma hiding there somewhere behind the undercooked chips at O'Connell's

There are now two menus - one for the restaurant proper and a more simple bar menu.  We ate outside because it was a sunny day and so were limited to the bar menu.  The bar menu mainly sticks to classic pub grub like burgers, pies and steaks, all reasonably priced.  Unfortunately these classics were not perfectly executed.  The main problem was the accompanying fat chips which came with each meal.  They hadn't been cooked enough and were a pale yellow instead of bronzed, crisp and fluffy inside. 

Inside O'Connell's

The chicken schnitzel ($24) was dry and slightly rubbery and the steak ($28), while perfectly cooked to medium rare with a smoky char from the wood fired grill, was pretty tiny weighing in at 200 grams.

The pie at O'Connell's - sadly let down by the accompanying chips

The best dish on the bar menu was the pie of the day ($20) which was beef, slow cooked until it fell apart at the fork.  Topped with a hat of burnished puff pastry it delivered where the other dishes did not.  While O'Connell's now certainly looks like a serious gastro pub the food at the bar menu doesn't live up to its reputation.  

Essentials

Details: O'Connell's, Cnr Coventry and Montague Streets, South Melbourne (Ph 03 9699 9600) 

Damage:  Reasonable. 

5/10

Itali.Co

Nutella pizza where have you been all my life? Of course I've seen dessert pizzas on menus around town but I had never been tempted to try one until I was invited along to a dinner for bloggers and journalists at newly opened Itali.Co in St Kilda.  All those nutella pizzas I haven't eaten over the years? Big mistake by me.  Huge mistake.

Nutella pizza at Itali Co 

How to make Bircher muesli with toasted almonds and blueberries

When I'm on holidays and happen to be staying at a fancy hotel I always get the Bircher muesli at the breakfast buffet.  Obviously alongside about ten other things like pancakes and pastries, but the Bircher muesli is always there.  I love Bircher muesli but had never made it at home because I have always been deterred by the requirement to prepare it the night before.  I'm never that organised when it comes to breakfast.  But it turns out Bircher muesli is actually really easy to make and you can even cheat and just get started on it one hour before you want to eat it.  That's enough time to have a coffee and read the papers before tucking into your home made Bircher muesli.

No need to wait for hotel Bircher muesli

Jack Rabbit Winery: Gourmet Chick on the Surf Coast

It's been an endless summer in Melbourne this year.  On one of those perfect blue sky days we celebrated my Mum's birthday at a winery on the Bellarine peninsula, Jack Rabbit.  Down the end of a dirt track Jack Rabbit clings to a grassy hill which rolls down to the ocean.  The vines stretch out behind and there's a modern tasting room, cafe and more formal restaurant.

Jack Rabbit Winery

Cumulus Up

I had a classic Melbourne night out last night with Meat-and-Three-Veg.  We went along to a Comedy Festival show (David O'Doherty) for some belly laughs and then wandered up Flinders lane to Cumulus Inc.  But instead of heading to the iconic basement restaurant we went up the stairs to the right to the newly opened Cumulus Up.

Upstairs at Cumulus Up - it feels like it has always been there

How to make camp oven slow cooked lamb

When you live in the city sometimes you just have to head to the countryside.  For the Easter break Meat-and-Three-Veg and I did a road trip to our friend Beth's farm near the Murray river.  The land there is flat and open and there is such an amazing feeling of space that was immediately relaxing.  We proved to be not very helpful at jobs around the farm but one thing I could do was lend a hand cooking camp ovens for lunch.

Melbourne's newest openings: Circa Yaktiroi Bar, Rosa's Kitchen and Etto

Melbourne is hard to keep up with sometimes.  There's always new restaurants opening and closing and there has been a rash of them lately.  I've been invited along to a few of the newest places and have also gone under my own steam to check some out.  So here's my take on three of them: the pop up yakitori bar at Circa, Rosa's Kitchen and Etto.

Carbonara pasta at Etto 

How to make white chocolate mini pavlovas

Now we've finally moved into our new house and have a dining room table that seats more than two people comfortably it's been fun to have friends around for dinner.  The way it usually goes is that I'm in charge of cooking and Meat-and-Three-Veg is in charge of washing up.  Every time before dinner he complains about the amount of dishes that I have managed to use in preparation but once he's eaten everything he's usually pretty happy.  Friends came over the other night and after following tradition by using every dish in the kitchen for the main meal I made a pretty simple dessert - mini versions of a white chocolate pavlova.

48 hours in Bright: Gourmet Chick in the High Country

At the foot of Victoria's mountains and with a river winding its way through the town, Bright has been a holiday destination for years.  After visiting some of the region's wineries last year, attending the High Country World's Longest Lunch just outside Bright was a great excuse for Meat-and-Three-Veg and me to spend a bit more time in Bright itself.   Our accommodation and some meals were provided by Tourism North East and the rest of the meals we paid for ourselves.

The Rail Trail Cafe just outside of Bright

Huxtaburger opens in the city

I didn't ever think I would miss the feeling of being hungover.  That queasy sensation and the pounding headache is no fun at all but it does give you a great excuse for a burger, fries and a coke.  My current state of non-hungover existence meant I had no good reason to rush into Huxtaburger as soon as it opened its doors in the city. But it's testament to Huxtaburger's burgers that I did.  They are still brilliant even when you are fresh as a daisy.

Huxtaburger has opened in the CBD